I didn't know who Sarmad Tariq was... until he passed away

Initially I didn’t care much; people die all the time. But can someone you’ve never known inspire you to rethink life?

Ema Anis April 30, 2014
Can someone you’ve never known, someone whose name you’ve never heard of, inspire you enough to rethink your entire life?

Apparently it can.

It was only a couple of Facebook posts and the news of his death that moved me, leaving me feeling a little broken inside.

When I logged on to Twitter this morning, I found my timeline flooded with people mourning the death of Sarmad Tariq and talking about what a great person he was. Initially, I didn’t care much. I mean, people die all the time. Famous people die too. And everyone sings their praises after they are gone.

There was nothing very interesting about this news.

But after reading a number of tweets, I was intrigued enough to go to his Facebook page.

https://twitter.com/MunawarJamal/status/461481553332543490

https://twitter.com/asadrazasyed1/status/461473151915151360

A man with a tattoo below his right ear saying ‘Allah’ and ‘About me’ description on his page reading,
“Not a saviour, not a leader, not a role model, just a tough act to follow”.

He seemed more like a director or an actor to me at first glance.

Screengrab from Sarmad Tariq's Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/sarmad.tariq)

But there was more to him than what I could see from his display picture.

I scrolled down.

The last post on his Facebook page was an open letter to God, pleading Him for a break from his pain. He was severely sick with multiple diseases but he hadn’t seemed to have lost hope.

Screengrab from Sarmad Tariq's Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/sarmad.tariq)

After reading a few more of his posts about the stark realities of life and death, I was left shaken inside and also felt guilty for not having known of him before, for finding out about him too late and for never having the chance to have met him.

motivational speaker who was paralysed neck down due to a swimming accident when he was only 15-years-old, Sarmad had travelled the world on his wheelchair, represented the country and most-definitely touched a thousand hearts.



That was more than enough I needed to know about him.

I had not seen any documentaries about him, had never heard him talk and yet, in a matter of minutes, he became the person I wanted to meet just once; someone to draw inspiration from, to find hope to go through this life and to learn to live it to the fullest.

To me, Sarmad seemed like a person who had ‘life’ figured out. He didn’t just know but was constantly aware of the fact that death is imminent. He was prepared for it and wanted to make the most of every single moment of his life.

And he succeeded.

In one of his last posts, he said,
“Do all of us sooner or later realise that we are going to die? Yes. Do all of us eventually realise that we are alive? No. It is tragic but true. So many die without ever knowing that they were alive.”

Screengrab from Sarmad Tariq's Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/sarmad.tariq)
Sarmad may have left this world, but he is not ‘dead’. And just like in life, his death is a lesson for all of us on how to live.

Rest in peace, Sarmad Tariq.
WRITTEN BY:
Ema Anis
The views expressed by the writer and the reader comments do not necassarily reflect the views and policies of the Express Tribune.

COMMENTS (27)

Ibraheem Ahmad | 9 years ago | Reply I still remember, going to meet him having an expectation to find my life answers and solutions to my problems and coming out of his room with embarrassment of knowing that i am the cause of most of my life problems. Indeed he is a great loss for the country. I was lucky to have him as a friend, elder brother and mentor for some years. And as he once said: 'Is it not interesting that how we tell others that we know some famous personality, as if it will increase our own significance as humans in the community'. He was love!
Batool | 9 years ago | Reply Never met him but I wish I could. [*Sigh*] Rest in peace Sarmad Tariq!
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